Video: The lasso tools

So in this video, I'm going to show you some Lasso tool power shortcuts. Let's begin with just the Regular Lasso tool. You see that there are three variants here. Let's keep the tool slot open for just one second. There is the Regular Lasso tool, a Polygonal Lasso tool and the Magnetic Lasso tool. I'm talking about these two, the Lasso and Polygonal. You don't actually need to switch between the two tools, if you wanted to switch behavior. You just need to hold down the make better key, the Option key on the Mac or the Alt key on Windows. So normally with the Regular Lasso tool, you press-and-drag and you just do any freeform shape you want. You have to keep your mouse button down, because the minute you let go, it finishes the selection, right? So let's go ahead and click to deselect. While I'm dragging now, if I want to use more of a rubber band or connect-the-dots approach, that's when I'll hold down the Option or Alt key.

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The lasso tools

So in this video, I'm going to show you some Lasso tool power shortcuts.Let's begin with just the Regular Lasso tool. You see that there are three variants here. Let's keep the tool slot open for just one second. There is the RegularLasso tool, a Polygonal Lasso tool and the Magnetic Lasso tool.I'm talking about these two, the Lasso and Polygonal. You don't actually needto switch between the two tools, if you wanted to switch behavior. You justneed to hold down the make better key, the Option key on the Mac or the Alt key on Windows.So normally with the Regular Lasso tool, you press-and-drag and you just do anyfreeform shape you want. You have to keep your mouse button down, because theminute you let go, it finishes the selection, right? So let's go ahead andclick to deselect. While I'm dragging now, if I want to use more of a rubber bandor connect-the-dots approach, that's when I'll hold down the Option or Alt key.

Now I can actually let go of the mouse. My hand is off the mouse right now. As I move the mouse now, when I want to lay down a point, I click and then I canmove the mouse again and then click, and then click. Then when I want to goback to just the Regular Lasso tool just dragging, hold the mouse button down,let go of the Option or Alt key and I'm back to the Regular Lasso tool behavior.So basically the Option or Alt key lets you toggle back and forth. Same thingif I start with the Polygonal tool for some reason. I'm doing theconnect-the-dots type usage here. If I want to start doing a freeformdragging, just hold down the Option key or the Alt key and now you'veconverted the Polygonal Lasso tool to the Regular Lasso tool.

It actually gives you cursor feedback. So right now, you can see without thekey held down, I'm in the Polygonal tool. If I hold down Option or Alt,the cursor actually changes to reflect that you're getting the different Lasso tool behavior.Once you have a selection started, just like the Regular Elliptical andRectangular Marquee tools, you can add and subtract to selections. So if I wantto add to my selection, you hold down the Shift key, of course. If you want tosubtract from your selection, you hold down the Option or Alt key to take abite out of your existing selection.And of course, if you want the inner section of your selections, you hold downShift and Alt or Shift and Option at the same time. Then when I drag and let go, I get the inner section of where I dragged across.

So there are some power shortcuts for working with the Lasso and Polygonal Lasso tools.

Learn by watching, listening, and doing, Exercise files are the same files the author uses in the course, so you can download them and follow along Premium memberships include access to all exercise files in the library.

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Learn by watching, listening, and doing! Exercise files are the same files the author uses in the course, so you can download them and follow along. Exercise files are available with all Premium memberships.
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